On Thursday, September 19, 2019, the Western Diocese of the Armenian Church of North America welcomed officials from the City of Glendale.

The city officials in attendance were Mayor Ara Najarian, Councilmember Vrej Agajanian, Councilmember Paula Devine, Councilmember Vartan Gharpetian, City Manager Yasmin Beers, Assistant City Manager Roubik Golanian, City Attorney Michael Garcia, Glendale Police Captain Scott Bickle, Public Information Officer Eliza Papazian, Senior Administrative Analyst Christine Powers, Deputy City Manager John Takhtalian, and Public Safety Business Coordinator of the Fire Department Anita Shandi were treated to a luncheon at the Hampar Family Reception Room. Diocesan benefactors, sub-committee members and staff were also in attendance. 

In his introductory remarks, Diocese’s Program Management and Special Assignments Director Mr. Diran Avagyan welcomed the esteemed guests and expressed his gratitude for their valuable contributions to the community life. “The goal of this traditional annual luncheon is two-fold. First, we would like to express our heartfelt gratitude to the men and women of City of Glendale officials for the conscientious and dedicated service rendered to our communities. Secondly, as we break bread together in the spirit of camaraderie and share about our service, we explore new avenues of collaboration in the scope of our mission,” stated Mr. Avagyan. He also highlighted the long-standing relations of the Western Diocese with Dignity Health Glendale Memorial Hospital, Adventist Health, YWCA of Glendale, Glendale Unified School District and many others.

Remarks were also made by Dn. Harout Markarian, Executive Director of the Western Diocese who introduced the mission and the presence of the Western Diocese in the life of the community to the guests as well as the activities of the Armenian Church, the oldest Armenian institution in the United States which dates back to the 1880s.

The Diocesan Primate reflected on the years of partnership between the Diocese and the City of Glendale. The Primate commended the city officials for their invaluable services rendered for the betterment of the community. Archbishop Derderian then introduced the community leaders as well as the Diocesan staff to Mayor Ara Najarian and the officials.

The Honorable Mayor Ara Najarian introduced his colleagues and stressed the importance of collaboration between the institutions and noted that he looks forward to strengthening the bond of partnership.